FTC ACCA tips for June 2007 exam 2.1详解之evaluating

1 Changeover techniques (data conversion)
【meanings & merits of changeover techniques】
Parallel running, 06.6.6
The old & new systems are run in parallel, both processing current data and the results are compared (need to planned how long, what if problems)
Two typical advantages of parallel running are:
1.The existence of a ‘fail-safe’ proven current system which can be returned to if the proposed replacement turns to be inaccurate or unreliable. The existence of this system effectively reduces the risks associated with implementing a new system.
2.The prolonged period of parallel running allows staff to gradually become familiar with the new system and its associated procedures. It effectively provides a relatively long period of time where training (and testing) can be done to gain the user’s understanding and acceptance
Direct changeover 06.6.6
The current system is replaced immediately by the replacement system. Transactions are passed solely through the new system.
Two typical advantages of direct changeover are:
1.If the proposed replacement system is effectively tested, then the direct changeover approach provides a much cheaper implementation method than the normal alternative (parallel running) where transactions have to be entered through both the current and proposed system. This is costly and time consuming and may impinge on the effectiveness of the overall business process.
2.Direct changeover is a much more widely applicable approach to implementation than the other alternatives. It can be used in circumstances where there is no current system or where the current system is so different that meaningful comparison of transactions is not possible.
【meaning and what problems data conversion could cause】06.6.6
05.6.2
Data conversion means converting existing files into a format suitable for a new system,
Problems that might be encountered include:
—One field in the current system (for example: address), may have to be converted into several fields in the proposed system (for example; addressline1, addressline2, county and postcode).
—The structure of fields in the current system (for example, their length, format or type) may be different in the proposed system.
—Data in the current system may be incorrect and transfer to the proposed system may lead to subsequent failure due to the display of invalid data.
【issues need to be addressed when populating the new file structure】04.6.6
Issues include:
—How to split up the examiner address in the current system to populate the three address lines in the proposed system.
—How to organise the entry of examiner codes into the new EXAMINER file and populate this field in the EXAMINATION file.
—Whether Examiner names have been abbreviated in the current ASSESSMENT file and now need to be expanded for the larger Examiner name field in the EXAMINER file.
—How to enter syllabus summary information into the new system. This data does not exist on the old system.
2 Documentation
【documentation expect from sw supplier and what constitutes high quality documentation】03.6.3
—user manual (focus on business functions the users will have, eg 'raise a payment against insurance claim', high quality: up-to-date, well designed layout, clear print)
—technical doc. (concerning installing software, keeping it operation& recovering from hardware loss, high quality: technical accuracy & completeness)
【plus】
Bespoke or internally produced software will require very comprehensive documentation enabling it to be maintained
Standard package require only enough documentation to enable the users to exploit its full capability

[ 本帖最后由 zhongya8558 于 2007-5-6 11:10 编辑 ]

4 Maintenance (regression testing/change process)
【regression testing and its implication for the changes】05.6.6
Difinition: concerns testing ‘unchanged’ parts of the system to ensure a change has not caused a fault.
Couse: A ‘simple’ change in one area of the system may have unpredicted effects elsewhere. It is therefore important to carry out regression testing.
Implication for change process: affect the time and costs required for change process.
【Types of maintenance】04.12.3
03.12.6
01.12.6
Maintenance: the redoing of certain aspects of the systems development process.
1. Corrective – to fix a problem or failure
- although most faults should be eliminated during testing process, problems may be revealed during the operation of the system
- urgent as the system cannot be fully operation
2. Perfective – to improve the performance, usability, efficiency or effectiveness
prompted by
-the availability of new technology, e.g. adopt GUI (graphical user interface)


-a request for system enhancement from users
3. Adaptive – to fit the new environment

enables the system to adjust to changes in its environment e.g. new taxation legislation require to change the payroll software
【main components of formal change control procedure】 05.6.6
02.6.2
1. raising change request
2. evaluating the impact of change request (time & cost)
3. Get approval by steering committee & project sponsor regarding the additional costs & time if any
4. specifying the change request in details
5. coding and unit testing
6. system & user acceptance testing
7. implement the change (release into the live system)
【issues concerning the data need to be addressed when populating the new system】04.6.6
Issues include:
— How to split up the examiner address in the current system to populate the three address lines in the proposed system.
— How to organise the entry of examiner codes into the new EXAMINER file and populate this field in the EXAMINATION file.
— Whether Examiner names have been abbreviated in the current ASSESSMENT file and now need to be expanded for the larger Examiner name field in the EXAMINER file.
—How to enter syllabus summary information into the new system. This data does not exist on the old system.
【purpose and meaning of a change control procedure】01.12.3
A change control procedure is required to handle changes in requirements during the construction and maintenance of a software product. Changes are an important issue in systems development because they take time to define and design and implementing them will delay the delivery of the system. Changes are particularly significant in organisations where development costs are cross-charged, because agreed changes will have to be paid for in some way.
—A change control procedure ensures that changes are:
—Defined accurately and correctly
—Agreed with the sponsor, estimated and prioritised
—Designed and programmed
—Tested to ensure that they work correctly
—Released into the live software
【How the formal specification method can contribute to improve change control】01.12.3
- If a requirement was accurately defined, it should be clear whether a required alteration is a change
-This is clear in a ERM. If user agree that each claim may lead to many payments, but one payment is only for one claim, then any subsequent requirement that a payment should cover more than one claim is a definite change in requirement.
【plus: The causes of system maintenance】
Corrective ~
-
human error/ bugs
-
poor documentation (no chance to maintain, but patch up)
-
physical computer faults
-
poor training lead to incorrect operation
-
unforeseen impact of other computer systems
Perfective ~
advances in technology (GUI vs. textual)
-when system performance begins to degrade (e.g. response time longer than pre-set value)
Adaptive ~
-
user requirements changes or been wrongly defined when initiated
-
system environment changed (e.g. the company is taken over and data need to pass to and from head office)
-
the system has grown beyond the limits originally set (e.g. with expansion of business, the max. transaction volume, con-current users increased)

5 Post implementation issues
【purpose and objectives】05.12.6
A post-implementation review is normally carried out a few months after the new system has gone live. Its main purpose is to review whether the system has met its defined business objectives and to consider whether the delivered functionality matches the business need. The review will also focus on any difficulties encountered in using the system (for example, problems of usability, requirements not quite met, requirements that have changed since implementation) and actions will be agreed to tackle these difficulties. The review is normally a joint exercise between the users and suppliers of the system.
An end-project review is where the project formed to deliver a system, service or product is brought to an orderly close. The review often confirms the closure of the project by formally signing acceptance letters or undertaking an equivalent sign-off procedure. The end-project review examines how the project has been run with the prime aim of identifying good and bad practice that can be fed back into the project management standards. For example, continual failure to meet deadlines may be diagnosed as due to optimistic estimating. Hence, the end-project review panel may recommend changes to the model that produced those estimates.
【why it is important to conduct a post-implementation review】04.12.1
As in the scenario, a post-implementation review is held a few months after the system has gone live. Participants include representatives of the users of the software, the people who wrote or supplied it and appropriate senior management who can action any requests and resolve any issues. The review identifies perfective or corrective action required to improve the system, including technical modifications and further staff training. Such reviews may prevent similar problems occurring in future projects. The post-implementation review is an opportunity to ensure that the system is on course to meet the business case requirements (benefits outweighing costs) as well as the technical requirements of the system.
【structure & content of report】
post-implementation review

• Executive summary of findings

highlight problems e.g. Dec2004 case study: poorly designed report, absence of audit trail & archiving facility…

• A review of system performance and user satisfaction

by recording response time, down time, errors, questionnaires

• A cost-benefit analysis

comparing actual costs with actual benefits

• Recommendations for system modifications
  

end-project review

• Review of project initiation document

especially note the objectives from the project and check whether the objectives have been met…

• Performance

a review of achievements vs. original objectives, provides a comment on the way that the objectives were achieved, e.g. lack of clarity in objectives

• Productivity

how efficient the project was in terms of budgets for resources and the actual resources used. Budget comparisons for cost of the project, no.of hours spent…

• Quality of the product and the process of the product itself

e.g. whether the testing design effective
【Procedure to effectively collect the metrics】

• carefully select the metrics that can measure significant aspects of the system (time, costs or quality focus)

• agree the data collection methods with users
• test the metrics in advance
• use the metrics consistently to ensure comparability

【metrics to measure the success of the system】
Metrics: quantified measurements used to measure system performance e.g. response time, down times per week
the most appropriate measures for IS system
1、agreement to original specification
(compare specification and the outcome, e.g. 80% agree)
2、time (compare estimated & actual time )
3、financial objectives (egg. costs, NPV, IRR)
4、less quantifiable measures (egg. user-friendliness, customer satisfaction, questionnaires, no. of complaints)
【IS automation system will lead to greater efficiency by】
1.Costs of computer system lower than manual system

(e.g. e-marking system, costs of courier from & to the markers saved)
2.Accuracy of data processing improved as avoid human errors

(e.g. e-marking system, the markers can mark scripts directly on the screen & the results sent to exam centre’s database directly, no need to key in manually, which may lead to type error)
3.Speed of processing increased

(e.g. e-marking system, the markers can mark directly on the screen & the result send to exam centre’s database directly, which reduce the lead time on the way)

6 user group/workshop
【meaning & benefits &purpose of User Group】04.12.2
01.12.6
1.individual users band together to exchange info. and experience of using a particular package
2.form a focus for lobbying the developer to develop new features & correct current problems
3.encouraged & financed by the developer
4.User Groups can encourage and assist new users of the software.
5. Most User Groups issue newsletters and hold conferences and workshops
【meaning and conduct of user workshop】03.6.5
（访谈：每次的限于1-2人；专家引导）→导致用户论坛的产生（不限人数；用户建议）
1. the workshop is an open forum can explore requirements, issues & problems in a more reflective environment
2. led by a facilitator, need not significant IT skills
3.IT staff provide technical input and explore design solution using RAD (Rapid Application Development) tools
4.the proceedings of the workshop documented

3Training
【Training is needed】
—To ensure staff operate the system correctly
—To ensure staff feel confident to perform their tasks
—Overview of the role of training: finally help the organization achieve its objectives
【How to select training method】
Time needed/Complexity of the system/User skill level/Facilities available (space, hardware)/Cost budget
【Meaning & merits】04.12.2
Attendance public course: In classroom, intensive course
Adv
— Few staff members away from the office at any one time, means that remaining employees should be able to cope with the additional workload.
— Employees have the opportunity to meet users who work for other companies and to learn from their ideas and experience.
Disadv
—Long elapsed time to get everybody trained. It will be at least six months before all call-centre staff are trained.
—The public course is likely to be very standardised and so there may be little chance to discuss the problems of using the software in the context of the company.
Computer-based training (CBT):
Using CD, Internet
Adv
—Much the cheapest option. The total cost appears to be at least four times cheaper than the other two alternatives.
—Employees can learn at their own rate. They can structure their learning around their individual requirements and working day.
Disadv
—Employees may find it hard to motivate themselves to use the package or to find the time and opportunity to use it.
—The absence of an expert tutor means that there is no clear method of resolving problems that individuals have with the operation of the application software package.
Onsite course
Adv
—This option should allow delivery of training in a short elapsed time. A course held every two weeks could mean that the training would be completed within five weeks.
—The course can be tailored to local requirements..
Disadv
—Too many people away from their desk at any one time. It is unlikely that the remaining employees will be able to cope with the additional workload.
—There may be problems in setting up the hardware and software environment. This may yet prove to be the costliest option.
【how to deliver effective training】03.6.3
For training to be effective, Celia Berrington must first establish what she wants the training to achieve. Once these training objectives have been set, she must identify the gap between what employees know now and what they must know in the future to use this software effectively. This is the ‘skills gap’ between their current knowledge and what they will need to know to be effective when the software has been installed.
Training attempts to address this gap but to do so it must be delivered at an appropriate time and use an appropriate method. A number of approaches might be looked at, from conventional lecturer-based training courses to computer-based tuition. The latter will allow the employees to move at their own pace, using the medium of the application -the computer. But however learning takes place (and different people have different learning styles) it must be assessed if the organization is to have some confidence that the training objectives have been achieved. Attendance on courses is no guarantee that the necessary skills have been attained and so some formal assessment (perhaps again on-line) is advisable. The key point is that standard proven training courses will be available for a software package supported by tried and tested documentation and exercises. Furthermore, computer-based tuition may also be available, developed at a cost that would be prohibitive to a bespoke solution.

24Implementation issues and implementation methods
(a)Plan for data conversion and creation.
(b)Discuss the need for training and suggest different methods of delivering such training.
(c)Describe the type of documentation needed to support implementation and comment on ways of effectively organising and presenting this documentation.
(d)Distinguish between parallel running and direct changeover and comment on the advantages and disadvantages of each.
25Post-implementation issues
(a)Describe the metrics required to measure the success of the system.
(b)Discuss the procedures that have to be implemented to effectively collect the agreed metrics.
(c)Identify what procedures and personnel should be put in place to support the users of the system.
(d)Explain the possible role of software monitors in measuring the success of the system.
(e)Describe the purpose and conduct of an end-project review and a post-implementation review.
(f)Describe the structure and content of written reports as compared with an end-project review and a post-implementation review.
26Change control in systems development and maintenance
(a)Describe the different types of maintenance that a system may require.
(b)Explain the need for a change control process for dealing with these changes
(c)Describe a maintenance lifecycle.
(d)Explain the meaning and problems of regression testing.
(e)Discuss the role of user groups and their influence on system requirements.

不错啊，请问LZ在哪儿找的呀？

原帖由 acca 于 2007-5-6 11:14 发表 http://www.52acca.com/bbs/images/common/back.gif
不错啊，请问LZ在哪儿找的呀？

根据坛子里的tips，汇编历年真题，考2.1唯有如此

LZ辛苦了啊，不错不错，味道好极了~~哈哈~

受益了，谢谢楼主哈~~